WGC-Cadillac Match Play 2015: Leaderboard Scores and Highlights from Friday
Play time is officially over at the 2015 WGC-Cadillac Match Play—it's bracket time.
The WGC-Cadillac Match Play underwent a format face-lift from years past for the 2015 edition. Rather than a March Madness-style 64-man bracket, there were 16 groups featuring four players each and round-robin matches for the first three days. Friday was the final day of round-robin competition, which means the single-elimination showdowns of the round of 16 are on deck.
Before looking ahead to the most exciting part of the tournament, here is a look at Friday's results and the resultant round-of-16 matchups.
| Group 1: Rory McIlroy vs. Billy Horschel and Brandt Snedeker vs. Jason Dufner | McIlroy defeats Horschel (20 holes) and Dufner defeats Snedeker (1 Up) |
| Group 2: Jordan Spieth vs. Lee Westwood and Matt Every vs. Mikko Ilonen | Westwood defeats Spieth (2 Up) and Ilonen defeats Every (8 and 6) |
| Group 3: Henrik Stenson vs. Bill Haas and Brendon Todd vs. John Senden | Haas defeats Stenson (3 and 1) and Senden defeats Todd (1 Up) |
| Group 4: Bubba Watson vs. Louis Oosthuizen and Keegan Bradley vs. Miguel Angel Jimenez | Oosthuizen defeats Watson (19 holes) and Jimenez defeats Bradley (2 Up) |
| Group 5: Jim Furyk vs. Martin Kaymer and Thongchai Jaidee vs. George Coetzee | Furyk defeats Kaymer (20 holes) and Coetzee defeats Jaidee (21 holes) |
| Group 6: Justin Rose vs. Ryan Palmer and Anirban Lahiri vs. Marc Leishman | Rose defeats Palmer (2 and 1) and Leishman defeats Lahiri (1 Up) |
| Group 7: Jason Day vs. Zach Johnson and Branden Grace vs. Charley Hoffman | Johnson defeats Day (3 and 2) and Grace defeats Hoffman (2 and 1) |
| Group 8: Dustin Johnson vs. Victor Dubuisson and Charl Schwartzel vs. Matt Jones | Johnson defeats Dubuisson (2 and 1) and Schwartzel defeats Jones (20 holes) |
| Group 9: Adam Scott vs. Chris Kirk and Paul Casey vs. Francesco Molinari | Kirk defeats Scott (1 Up) and Casey defeats Molinari (1 Up) |
| Group 10: Sergio Garcia vs. Jamie Donaldson and Bernd Wiesberger vs. Tommy Fleetwood | Donaldson defeats Garcia (2 and 1) and Fleetwood defeats Wiesberger (19 holes) |
| Group 11: Jimmy Walker vs. Ian Poulter and Webb Simpson vs. Gary Woodland | Poulter defeats Walker (4 and 2) and Woodland defeats Simpson (1 Up) |
| Group 12: J.B. Holmes vs. Brooks Koepka and Russell Henley vs. Marc Warren | Holmes defeats Koepka (2 and 1) and Henley defeats Warren (1 Up) |
| Group 13: Rickie Fowler vs. Graeme McDowell and Shane Lowry vs. Harris English | Fowler defeats McDowell (5 and 4) and English defeats Lowry (1 Up) |
| Group 14: Matt Kuchar vs. Hunter Mahan and Stephen Gallacher vs. Ben Martin | Mahan defeats Kuchar (5 and 4) and Martin defeats Gallacher (20 holes) |
| Group 15: Patrick Reed vs. Ryan Moore and Danny Willett vs. Andy Sullivan | Reed defeats Moore (1 Up) and Willett defeats Sullivan (1 Up) |
| Group 16: Hideki Matsuyama vs. Kevin Na and Joost Luiten vs. Alexander Levy | Matsuyama defeats Na (5 and 4) and Luiten defeats Levy (1 Up) |
| Rory McIlroy vs. Matsuyama | McIlroy |
| Paul Casey vs. Charl Schwartzel | Casey |
| Jim Furyk vs. J.B. Holmes | Furyk |
| Rickie Fowler vs. Louis Oosthuizen | Fowler |
| John Senden vs. Hunter Mahan | Mahan |
| Gary Woodland vs. Marc Leishman | Leishman |
| Branden Grace vs. Tommy Fleetwood | Grace |
| Danny Willett vs. Lee Westwood | Westwood |
Friday Results
Given the stakes and the star power involved, Friday's most dramatic match was the one between Jordan Spieth and Lee Westwood.
Many envisioned a Spieth and Rory McIlroy showdown in the final at the Match Play Championship, but Westwood missed the memo and knocked the Masters champion out of the tournament with a 2-up victory. Both Spieth and Westwood won their first two matches, and it set up a loser-go-home scenario for the holder of the green jacket.
Westwood came through when it mattered most and birdied three of the final four holes, but his par on No. 16 was the important moment. Westwood hit his drive into the sand and missed the green on the next two chips, but the third time was a charm when he chipped in for a critical par.
The PGA Tour passed along the highlight:
Spieth put it simply after the match, per Steve Kroner of the San Francisco Chronicle: "I just had a tough opponent." The Masters champion also took to Twitter following the loss:
Kelly Tilghman of the Golf Channel described the surprising result:
"42 he old Lee Westwood just eliminated a player half his age who's been making birdie on nearly half his holes. Spieth gone. Lee advances.
— Kelly Tilghman (@KellyTilghmanGC) May 1, 2015"
Spieth's loss and a number of other upsets put the pressure on McIlroy against Billy Horschel from a star-power perspective, as Bob Harig of ESPN.com acknowledged:
Despite Horschel's early lead, McIlroy put home his third consecutive birdie on No. 18 to force extra holes. The PGA Tour pointed out how clutch McIlroy's finishing stretch was to extend the match:
McIlroy parlayed that strong finish at No. 18 into a victory, but it took him two extra playoff holes. Golf Digest pointed out that McIlroy never had control of the match, while Doug Ferguson of The Associated Press acknowledged that McIlroy's win was more of a war of attrition than anything else:
McIlroy commented on his performance, per the PGA Tour:
McIlroy's match wasn't the only one to go beyond No. 18.
In fact, seven matches went to extra holes, including Louis Oosthuizen's victory over Bubba Watson and Jim Furyk's win over Martin Kaymer.
Despite all the extra holes, the most pressure-packed finish of the day came for Branden Grace.
Heading into Friday's competition, Grace needed to beat Charley Hoffman and hope for a victory from Zach Johnson against Jason Day. That is exactly what happened, which forced a three-man playoff to determine the Group 7 winner.
Grace took advantage of the playoff and drilled a 12-foot birdie putt on the third extra hole after all three birdied the first hole and finished with a par on the second playoff hole.
Grace's Group 7 victory means there will be a new champion this year, as Harig noted:
Grace's sudden-death win may have been the craziest finish on the course, but the most unexpected moment came from Keegan Bradley and Miguel Angel Jimenez in a meaningless match, as Golf Central, Randall Mell of GolfChannel.com and Michael Collins of ESPN described:
Perhaps they are just excited about Saturday's Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao showdown.
After a dramatic final day of round-robin competition that almost included a fight, it is time to look ahead to the round of 16. That is where the pressure of a lose-and-go-home situation arises in every round, which is what makes match play so intriguing.
The tournament may not have as much star power in the round of 16 as it did at the start, but there are still a number of marquee names to watch, including McIlroy. McIlroy should have plenty of momentum and confidence on his side after a red-hot finish Friday allowed him to advance, and his biggest hurdle in the tournament (Spieth) is no longer around.
If McIlroy plays like he did down the stretch Friday, he will take home the title.
Elsewhere, Westwood is certainly a threat after his impressive win over Spieth. He beat the Masters champion who was playing better golf than anyone on Tour leading up to the Match Play Championship and shouldn't be intimidated by the moment in the later rounds after finishing 3-0 in round-robin competition.
The possibility of a Rickie Fowler and Furyk showdown in the quarterfinals is also on the table, but looking ahead is a dangerous game during match play. All it takes is one bad hole to ruin championship dreams or one hot stretch to advance.
